Liquified Natural Gas Receiving Terminal

As the United States moves toward cleaner energy while facing growing energy demands, natural gas is growing in popularity. Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is easily transportable by tanker and can travel to places where pipelines cannot. This team designed an LNG receiving terminal in Massachusetts.

The terminal receives regular tanker shipments of LNG into a pair of large full-containment cryogenic storage tanks. These tanks have a secondary containment chamber to prevent leaks and spills, while maintaining the very low operating temperature. Boil-off gas from the tanks is compressed and used to fuel the vaporizing system. The re-gasification system uses a submerged combustion vaporizer which is heated by burning a small fraction of the facility’s natural gas. The gaseous natural gas is then sent to the pipeline for distribution. The terminal is designed to have an adjustable send-out rate to account for seasonal demand changes.